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研究発表を行った学会；オリジナルデータ
タイトル；Mechanism of maintenance DNA methylation in mammalian cells.
発表者；岡野　正樹　氏
　　　（熊本大学　発生医学研究所　多能性幹細胞分野）
要旨；
Methylation of DNA at cytosine residue is an epigenetic mechanism that stabilizes gene expression and repression for a long term. DNA methylation profile in genome is faithfully inherited through multiple cell divisions, based on a template-dependent copy by DNA methyltransferase-1 (Dnmt1). One mechanism underlying the methylation inheritance is DNMT1’s localization to DNA replication sites where methylation inheritance occurs. The hemi-methylated CpGs, which are generated after semi-conservative DNA replication, are the major determinant for DNMT1 localizing to replication sites, and NP95/UHRF1 regulates this process. However, a whole process of DNMT1 regulation in methylation inheritance remains elusive. We generated a series of DNMT1 mutant expression vectors in which single alanine mutations were introduced within and around the conserved domains, and then searched critical domains and amino acid residues of DNMT1 required for its methylation-dependent localization in mouse ES cells. Our study indicates the critical role of the protein conformation of DNMT1 in its cytological regulation.